Camp Week 1 - The Worksite

As I previously mentioned we were able to work for 41 amazing families this week which consisted of a wide variety of jobs including quite a bit of yardwork, exterior painting, floor repairs, and porches being built as well as some extensive handrails, a set of steps, and a 32 foot wheelchair ramp.  Because I am on the program team and not the field team I deal a lot less with the projects and seeing a finished product (part of the reason I don't really have many pictures), but I do visit a lot of families for the very first time.  Mrs. Ruth Franklin for instance I visited with Mary Claire on my staff and that is the lovely lady we built a wheel chair ramp for.  Her arthritis would flair up in her knees every time she had to leave the house and walk down some very unstable steps and I am so happy we were able to work for her.  Also, one of my staff member Christina was still in the process of graduating and so she missed a few days of pre-camp and since I was a field last year I spent a few afternoons scheduling a few of her projects and also got to meet Mrs. Lovett, Mrs. Kencaid, and Mrs. Pagent.  First off Mrs. Pagent was a talker!  We were going to do a two day painting project of her whole house and she was very thankful for it, but I got to hear all about her house and dog and four chickens and garden and this black racer she killed a few years ago etc etc, but she was such an awesome woman and I loved hearing every story.  Second Mrs. Kencaid, once a very sweet old lady who needed a new back porch and steps, because literally when I walked on her old one I fell through and one of my other staff members did too!  (Go ahead and feel free to chuckle it was quite funny, because it was luckily only a two foot drop!)  Lastly, Mrs. Lovett was amazing!  Her mobile home was, well it was one of those houses that if you could you would just get her a whole new one, but that lady has more grattitude than I think I will ever be able to have and she was super inspirational just to visit with.  She kept her house open to her whole family and I had to meet at least five long lost cousins in just the thirty minutes I was there!  Also, on Monday I was Field for a Day and got to see three projects to completion.  Mrs. Burcham was one of those ladies who you really just need to talk to because I needed to stop by once, just to pick up a weed eater and take it to another group and I talked/laughed (mostly laughed) with her for fifteen minutes!  Also, the Made family has a special place in my heart because they were such an inspiration!  We fixed two boards in their eaves and then painted all the trim work, as well as did a little yardwork!  They were an awesome family and unbelievable grateful even though we hadn't really done all that much and they just wanted to give to us!  Mr. Made, a man who has had far to much tragedy in his life, told me a little story.  Brandy (his wife) and I were out running errands when I found a one dollar bill on the ground.  Then as we were looking for something in the car I also found out a $20 bill.  We decided we might as well go buy a few scratch off lottery tickets cause we didn't even know we had this money.  They then won $100 in a scratch off ticket.  As they arrived back at home they saw a flier in their door and it was a note from CCC saying that we had been by to visit earlier, but no one was at home!  He told me that he had never had such a God blessed day and that we were certainly the biggest blessing.  All in a good days work!!! :)